| Letter to Nature here. This is an area of research that (I think) should go forward but with the most careful vetting and security. The scientists are right to pause, and the international scientific community needs to review the criteria by which the work will be done. We have rules regarding how other deadly viruses (e.g., ebola) are handled, but those don't necessarily apply in other countries and in laboratories that do not receive government funding. The science world needs to catch up in its understanding of the risks of this work getting into the wrong hands. |
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